Lavender essential oil is extracted using various models of steam distillers. Many lavender growers have relatively small distillers, which make maximizing oil extraction efficiency very important. Over the past two years OMAFRA and the University of Guelph have been testing various methods for getting the most oil out of your lavender.

Results in 2013 with a replicated research trial showed that it was better to keep some stem material on the lavender in the distiller than to try to remove all of the stems. When the distiller was filled with mostly flowers and less stems, the vessel became too tightly packed and less oil was extracted per weight of flowers. This was probably due to the development of channels through or around the flowers where steam by-passed the plant material and was unable to pick up the oils from the buds in the centre of dense areas of flowers. Continue reading →

Ontario specialty crop growers may be interested in a new report released by the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO). The report is a follow up from the International Year of Quinoa in 2013.

“The scientific studies and articles compiled herein describe with precision the potential contribution of quinoa and its limitations with regard to its cultivation, and promote its consumption in different parts of the world. The state of the world’s quinoa tracks the “footsteps” of quinoa to determine current sectorial trends in 2013 for this exceptional crop which, due to its nutritional qualities, its diversity and its resistance to drought and cold, has been identified as an important alternative to contribute to global food security, especially in areas where the population has no access to adequate sources of protein, or where there are environmental constraints to food crop production.”

The Ontario Biomass Producers Co-operative (OBPC) is holding its Ag Biomass Day 2015 on Friday, March 27 in Guelph, Ontario. The event will focus on research activities of interest to switchgrass and miscanthus growers as well as development of new markets.

Specialty Cropportunities is OMAFRA’s online specialty crop resource. It includes general information on specialty crop agronomics, business planning and marketing and provides specific agronomic information on over 100 specialty crops. We recently added 8 new crop profiles to the module. The following new profiles were added:

Considering growing a new crop? Not sure what crops can be grown on your farm? Want to find out what is ‘hot” right now? Growing specialty crops presents some unique challenges compared to traditional crops. These include: few options for pest management; minimal agronomic information; undeveloped or small markets; and specialized equipment. Facilitators, Evan Elford and Jim Todd from OMAFRA, will review new, specialty or non-traditional crops that are proving to have merit in this area of Ontario. The crops to be discussed will include: quinoa, grain amaranth, teff, edamame, industrial oilseeds and energy/fibre crops.

Ontario growers interested in learning more about quinoa may be interested in a recent newsletter article published by the US based IR-4 Program (Vol. 46 No. 1 Winter 2015). The article provides a good overview of crop history, pest issues and current market values and issues. Please click here to access a copy of the IR-4 article.

To access other quinoa resources please visit the following links on the OMAFRA website: